Stocks closed little changed on Thursday as lawmakers struggled to push through new fiscal stimulus before year-end. Sentiment was also dampened by the release of weaker-than-expected jobless claims data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed lower by 69.55 points, or 0.2%, at 29,999.26.
The S&P 500 dipped 0.1% to 3,668.10.
The Nasdaq Composite outperformed with a 0.5% gain, closing at 12,405.81 as Netflix and Apple each rose more than 1%.
Verizon and IBM each fell at least 1% to lead the Dow lower. Industrials dragged down the S&P 500, pulling back by 0.9%.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters Thursday that bipartisan negotiations were leading to “great progress” for an additional government aid package. However, Pelosi added that both sides were still debating over a liability waiver for businesses.
Democrats again endorsed a $908 billion bipartisan stimulus proposal, but Politico reported that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s staff told other congressional leaders’ offices that senate Republicans would not support the measure.
Jobless claims jump
Initial weekly jobless claims jumped to 853,000 last week, topping a Dow Jones estimate of 730,000. That marks the highest number of initial claims being filed since September and the first time since October that they topped 800,000.
Reference: CNBC
Thai
Eng